Chapter 28
The night shift is always much quieter, especially with half the force out at the compound after they brought Z in a couple of hours ago.
“You good?” Collins asks me as he’s walking past my desk in the bullpen.
“Huh? Yeah.” I nod to him as I look back at my monitor. “Just finishing up some shit.”
I hear the chair squeak as he sits down next to my desk and just looks at me.
“What?” I mutter as I look over at him.
“You’re about to do something stupid.”
“What?”
“You don’t have to tell me what it is.” He laughs, leaning over onto the top of the desk. “In fact, I’d prefer you didn’t tell me.” It makes me laugh as I look at him. “Is it stupid?”
I don’t say anything, but for some reason, I know I can trust him. Instead, I just nod my head.
“How stupid?”
Sighing deeply, “Come by in a couple hours.”
Nodding his head, he gets up, walking out of the station, leaving me inside with nothing but my bad decisions.
* * *
The knocking on my door sounds causing me take a long sip from my glass as I walk over to it. Collins nods his head as he walks in.
“Did you do something stupid?”
“Depends on what you classify as stupid.” I laugh, downing the whiskey.
“What did you do?”
“I thought you didn’t want to know?”
“You destroyed it, didn’t you?”
I’m shocked as I look at him, slowly nodding my head.
He shakes his head as he exhales. “Goddamnit, Eli.”
“Look, turn me in if you want; I don’t care.”
“I’m not gonna do that.”
“What? Why?”
“Cause it’s bullshit evidence, the only thing that’s slightly sustainable is some grainy ass security camera from a gas station near where the prison is.
” He shakes his head, sitting down on my couch.
“Look, do I think he killed Sherman? Yeah, I think anyone who knew about the situation would think so. But I also think Sherman deserved to die, and that Z had every right to do it.”
“Why?” sitting down across from him.
“What Sherman did…” he trails off before looking back at me and tilting his head. “Why didn’t you at least wait until fucking midnight?”
“Why?”
“Do you not remember?” he laughs. “We’ve only gotten memos about it every day for a month. That the cameras and lock system would be down for a few minutes for maintenance.”
“Oh, yeah, I remember, but it wouldn’t matter. In fact, that would be even more suspect.”
“What? Why?”
“Because anything regarding Z or the MC in general goes missing and I’m anywhere in the precinct, they’re gonna look at me.”
Nodding his head, I think he gets what I’m saying. “Someone said they overheard Z telling Darren he had offered to raise the baby with Tate.”
I nod.
“What?”
“That’s just the way his family was. They took me in when I needed a home, and his parents treated me exactly like their own kid, even though I wasn’t. It doesn’t matter about blood with them; it’s about loyalty. He would have raised it with her as his own.”
“That just doesn’t seem like…”
“A manly thing to do?” I can’t help but laugh out.
“Something like that…”
“Or it’s something that only someone who’s completely secure with themselves would do.”
Tilting his head, he looks at me again before nodding.
We’re quiet as I get up from the chair, walking into the kitchen and pouring both of us a glass of whiskey and walking it back out.
“You’re hoping you get caught?” he asks me as I sit back down.
“What?”
“You know they’re gonna catch you.”
“Probably.”
“And you don’t care.”
“Not really.”
“Jesus Christ, you’re hoping they do.”
I don’t answer him; I just look forward, wondering if that’s exactly what I want.
“I mean, I get it. I joined the force cause I wanted to be a good guy; I wanted to take down bad guys. Ya know, but the longer I’m here the more I’m surrounded by bad guys I am.” He pauses, looking back at me. “But I feel like we have very different reasons for why we joined.”
Slowly, I just shrug.
We drink the whiskey I opened a few months ago when Z showed up at my backdoor.
“I have an idea.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s probably better that you don’t know.”
“Why’s that?”
“Plausible deniability.”
“Give me the phone you called Z with.”
“What?”
“Last time he was arrested, you had a burner phone. Give it to me.”
“No.”
“Just fucking do it.” His voice rises as he says it.
“It’s in my truck.”
“Get it.”
Sighing, I stand, and we both walk out the front door, around the house to the truck. Lifting the back seats, I pull the Faraday box from inside.
“What’s that?”
“It keeps signals from transponding.”
“Give me the whole thing.”
“What are you gonna do?”
He doesn’t answer me, but instead he walks over to his car, flips the engine over, and leaves the house.
Collins’s phone chirps, waking us from where we crashed in the living room once he got back last night. He was only gone for a few minutes and hasn’t yet told me what he was up to. He glances down at it before looking back at me. “Z was just released from custody.”
We both know that only means one thing.
* * *
I know it’s coming as the doors slide open.
It’s only a matter of time. I knew it wouldn’t take the investigation longer than a few days.
“Leech,” is called out.
Turning around and looking at the Captain, she just motions me to her office.
Walking in, I sit down in the seat across her desk from her.
Shit.
Oh course, the police chief and commissioner are here.
“Why’s everyone here?” I ask, glancing behind me.
“Come on.” One of the men behind me says. “You know why.”
“What are you talking about?” I ask turning around and looking at them.
I hear the captain clear her throat and look back at her. “We had to release Zane Anderson this morning.”
“Why?”
I’m annoyed by the scoff that comes from behind me.
“Cut the crap. We know.”
“Know what?” I’m not admitting to shit, if they know, they can come out and say it. I’m not offering it up.
“The evidence has been ruined.”
“What happened?”
“Eli, we know about your previous relationship with the Andersons.”
“Yeah, I’ve been pretty forthcoming about that from the beginning.”
“That is true.” She nods. “But it also means that we look at you when anything has to do with him.”
“You what?” I’m not really surprised. It would be dumb of them not to.
“We know you were in the evidence room last night.”
“Yeah, I was finishing up a report, just needed to make sure the evidence numbers were right.”
“Eli.” She tilts her head. “We know it was you.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
I laugh again, leaning forward, bracing my forearms against my thighs. And for the first time in a long time, I feel as if the old Eli is able to come out and play. “Then it should be easy to prove.” Leaning back and shrugging.
“Elias Leech, stand up and put your hands behind your back.”
I don’t say a word as the chief reads me my rights.
“Have fun.” The commissioner says to me. “You know how long cops make it in there.”
He’s right. It’s what’s scared me the most. Now, it’s just time to find out if his side of the deal still stands.
* * *
The cell is cold as I hear shouts throughout the concrete walls. The cell doors are open, but it’s still early enough that no one’s moving around.
“You a cop?” my cellmate asks me as he lies above me.
“Obviously not a very good one.”
It surprises me when my cellmate laughs along with me.
“Be careful; don’t let too many people know that.”
Glancing towards the door, I see a small group of men walking closer.
“I feel like it’s too late for that.” Pushing myself up from the cot as I attempt to stand my ground.
“I remember you. You were there when my boys and I got locked up.”
“Yeah, I remember, and did I do anything?” I laugh, shaking my head.
“What?”
“I may have shown up, but did I try to do anything? I questioned you, and what did I say?”
I watch as their anger rises more.
“I told you to shut the fuck up, to stop talking, because you were burying yourself.”
The inmates step towards me again; I know where this is going.
“Enough,” comes from past them. “He’s one of mine.”
The men look over at the voice as it comes into view. The gray beard and hair covering most of his face surprise me, but between that and the inmates’ faces, they tell me that whoever just came in runs this place.
“Man, look. I’m not really interested in the chummy cliques around here.”
“Ash.” The one word, the name, causes the men who came in here to intimidate me to leave without another question.
“What?”
He pauses for a moment as he glances up at my cellmate and nods for him to leave.
“Ash Anderson.”
“He’s been dead for 10 years.”
“God, has it been 10 years?” he asks me, shaking his head.
“How do you know Ash?”
Laughing, he nods his head. “I think the more important question is how a cop knows the former president of an outlaw biker club well enough for me to know they’re connected?” He sits down, looking at me. “Could it be that he was never really a cop at all?”
“What do you want?”
“Nothing. I’ve just come to introduce myself. I’m Tripp, Ella’s my niece.”
“Oh yeah, I’ve heard about you. You set someone on fire.”
“Yeah…” he nods his head, not one bit ashamed of what he did. He pauses for a moment before continuing. “Ash came and saw me a few weeks before he was killed, told me if the kids or you ever end up here, to watch out for them.”
“Did he tell you why?”
Slowly, he nods his head. “Yeah, he did. Now let me show you around. Introduce you.”
“I don’t want to tell everything.”
“You don’t have to, but as a former cop, you’ll have to tell them why you’re in here. Tell them you grew up with Z.”
* * *
“Leech.” The CO calls from the side of the table. “You have a visitor.”
“Who?”
“An Olivia Wessex.”
The last name causes people to stop moving around in the cafeteria.
Following him through the hallways, I pause at the door. I can see her through the windows, as she sits, stoic.
“I would not have expected you to be here.”
“I don’t want to like you.”
“So you’ve told me.” I laugh.
“No, like, I really don’t want to like you.”
“I feel a but coming.”
“You looked out for him.” She says it quietly so no one can overhear.
“Always have.”
“I assumed as much.” She nods her head. “Drew’s interning for Sherri.”
“I know, Sherri told me.”
“She still loves you.” She blurts out.
“What?” I look up at her, confused. “Is that what you came here to say?”
“Partly,” she nods her head. “I’ve known her for her entire life. And have been watching her for the last year, and she’s not been the same.” She lets out a scoff.
“Liv, I still love her, and I want to tell her...”
“Why haven’t you?”
I just stare at her for a moment as I look around the room. “Because I’m in fucking jail. Hell, the only reason I didn’t plead was because she asked me not to.”
“What? You talked to her?”
“Not exactly; she was at the arraignment. And she shook her head when she looked at me. Somehow I knew she was asking me not to.”
“And that’s where the ‘don’t want to’ comes in.” She laughs. “You make me like you.”
“What?” I ask her, confused.
“You know what she wants without her saying anything. And you protect her.”
Looking up at her, confused, I can tell by her face what she’s talking about. “She told you?”
Nodding her head, she smirks. “I think that’s when I started figuring it out.”
“Figuring what out?”
“Come on, Eli, you know what I’m talking about.”
I sit, looking at her, not wanting to guess, because what if she’s wrong? What if I’m wrong in assuming she knows?
“You should tell her.” She nods to me before looking around. “You should tell them all.”
“If you know, why haven’t you said anything?”
“It’s not my place to tell them.”
“I’m sure they won’t see it that way.”
“They’ll come around.” She just shrugs her shoulders before leaning closer towards me.
“How’d you figure it out and no one else?”
“The boys want to pretend to be mad at you. Because you betrayed them or some shit, but really they’re confused. They don’t understand why it seems like you went against everything we were all taught growing up. And they’ve each had their own shit going on. Drew wants to hate you.”
Looking down as the words sting, because I know how true they are.
“Keyword,” Liv starts again, “wants you, but just like me, she can’t.”